Tension of Tourism Development
Mass international tourism creates tension rather than understanding between people from different cultures. Do you agree or disagree, and why?
Tourism develops wherever you live. Thanks to globalization and technological advance, people in different regions are able to travel across their boundaries, even to the other side of the world, without difficulty. Does it mean the relationship between tourists and host communities is getting close together? To a larger extent, international tourism fails to achieve harmony each other with respect to cultural differences.
Host communities are acting as the weaker party when interacting with their guest and service providers. As mass tourism grows, visitors have more access to prevalent destinations. Cultural heritage unavoidably becomes vulnerable. Cultural deterioration may arise from illegal removal to vandalism. Several months ago, a Chinese tourist was severely criticized worldwide for scrawling his name on a famous Egyptian temple. Such physical influence violates the valuable assets of a local community which strongly discourages others to visit again.
More importantly, mass tourism stimulates commercialization which turns local culture into commodities for profits to support part of an area’s economy. As a major landmark in Hong Kong, the Big Buddha on Lantau Island illustrates a symbolic meaning of religious significance, yet Ngong Ping Village, adjacent to the site, is built with twenty-five restaurants, gift shops and entertainment facilities. By standardizing the tourist experience, the tourism industry tries to satisfy their desires for distinct culture while conforming to their expectations. When religious practices by local community is modified and shortened, the cultural identity of the destination will no longer be preserved. Without authentic experiences, how can people share their belief, value and custom with each other?
The development of mass tourism is still generally viewed as the most
Tourism develops wherever you live. Thanks to globalization and technological advance, people in different regions are able to travel across their boundaries, even to the other side of the world, without difficulty. Does it mean the relationship between tourists and host communities is getting close together? To a larger extent, international tourism fails to achieve harmony each other with respect to cultural differences.
Host communities are acting as the weaker party when interacting with their guest and service providers. As mass tourism grows, visitors have more access to prevalent destinations. Cultural heritage unavoidably becomes vulnerable. Cultural deterioration may arise from illegal removal to vandalism. Several months ago, a Chinese tourist was severely criticized worldwide for scrawling his name on a famous Egyptian temple. Such physical influence violates the valuable assets of a local community which strongly discourages others to visit again.
More importantly, mass tourism stimulates commercialization which turns local culture into commodities for profits to support part of an area’s economy. As a major landmark in Hong Kong, the Big Buddha on Lantau Island illustrates a symbolic meaning of religious significance, yet Ngong Ping Village, adjacent to the site, is built with twenty-five restaurants, gift shops and entertainment facilities. By standardizing the tourist experience, the tourism industry tries to satisfy their desires for distinct culture while conforming to their expectations. When religious practices by local community is modified and shortened, the cultural identity of the destination will no longer be preserved. Without authentic experiences, how can people share their belief, value and custom with each other?
The development of mass tourism is still generally viewed as the most